Back catalogue: Roots/Lovers Rock

Review: Albert "Alchemist" Thompson's Promise Land comes courtesy of Freestyle Records and has great appearances on the mic from reggae and dancehall greats Frankie Paul, Joseph Cotton, Prince Malachi and Anthony John. It has never before been released and has had a long maturation period over the last 30 years. Albert Thompson was chief engineer at I&I Sound Recording Studio once it left LA and head to Jamaica and he saw work with greats like Dennis Brown, Bunny Wailer and Gregory Isaacs. He laid down these rhythms in 1991 during some downtime and then added the vocals 16 years later in London when working with talented local and touring Jamaican artists.

Review: Tony Ruffcutt is a legend in the reggae scene and has been since the 70s. The label named after him has now got the right to recut a classic from that era, 'Love And Only Love' by Fred Locks. The original is a full-flavoured rhythm with nice wooden hits and brassy horns accompanying the fat-bottomed low end while the vocal is smooth up top. A dub mix and then a super dub adds even more weight to the low end and on the flipside is another roots icon in the form of Prince Alla who adds fresh lyrics to 'Man On Board'. The various overdubs and vocals were recorded in Jamaica with mixdowns taken care of by the legendary Caveman.

Review: No Bad Vibes is not only our mantra for the year ahead, but the name of this heart warming wedge of roots and lovers rock from Macka B and Patrick Andy. It's a brand new cut rather than a reissue which is what you might expect if you didn't know, such is the authenticity of its deep cut grooves and the buttery smoothness of the vocal from Jamaican-British reggae singer and musician Christopher McFarlane. The rhythm comes from Vivian Jackson's 'Walls Of Jerusalem' and on the flip is 'Word of The Wise' with a more gnarly vocals and plenty of well-picked and earthy guitar riffs.

Review: Rock A Shaka, hailing from Japan, go strong in their mission to reissue various reggae 45s. This one hears a revived new one from The Melodians, 'Sweet Rose', which previously only made it to some now very dusty old rocksteady 45's. Prince Glen's 'Hog In A Minty' - formerly 'Hog In Mintea' - meanwhile gets a downtrodden B-side pressing, with Glen singing mournfully of having nowhere to go. But with this release, he'll be crooning into the void no longer!

Review: Johnny Osbourne remains one of the most popular reggae vocalists of all time, and he is still turning out the jams now, well into his 70s. This one finds him billed alongside Jah Sawdem, about whom we know nothing and in fact this is the one and only entry next to his name on Discogs. A fine one it is, though, with a blissed out reggae rhythm topped by smooth as you like vocals and authentic instrumentals and keys. The flips side version from Natural Vibes & Pappa Tullo is 'Be Wise', featuring the same rhythm and different verses. Another big 12" from Jammy$ Jamaica that is primed and real for sound system deployment.

Review: Sound Of Thunder outta France lands at release number ten here with another gorgeous slice of lovers rock on 45rpm. It features contemporary producers and vocalists Loic Paulin & The SOA offering up A-side single 'Jason White'. At less than three minutes it is the definition of short but sweet but in that time it manages to make its mark with the yearning vocals really hitting home next to nice heat-damaged organ chords and a classic reggae rhythm. On the flip, Mellowmood spins out the sounds via plenty of mixing desk tweaks on his version 'Poor Jason Dub'.

Review: As the months warm up we all tend to lean towards the warm and fleshy sounds of dub, which makes releases like this one on Newentun all the more crucial. 'Sugarman' is a classic bit of lovers rock with those earthy guitar plucks, big wood block hits and steel drum sounds. The vocal is silky smooth and full of yearning while heat damaged organs and lazy harmonica further flesh things out. The Ska version has a more clipped and swiping rhythm with a great height to it and then the Jonas Sanchez Trombone Version has big fat wind leads that scream summer.

Review: French label Sky Tings brings the heat with this new 7" from Peter Youthman. His voice is truly unique, with a gnarly style yet soulful edge that gets well treated here and doused in tons of reverb and echo on the a-side joint 'Weh Dem A Go Do'. It's lovers rock but in a digital style, with shiny buffed metal chords and tumbling low-end basslines. It's one of those that could be 50 years old or brand new. On the backside is a 'Do The Dub' which finds some serious knob twiddling going on as the mixing desk becomes an instrument that flips this one into a late-night stoner jam.

Review: Archive Recordings have fully licensed a reissue of this classic of Freedom Sounds roots from 1977, and press it up on a tasty bit of blue wax. "Black Rose" is a real heater, with swaggering drums and bass, noodling chords buried deep in the mix and lead organ lines that carry you away on a breeze. Making use of the heavyweight Stone rhythm and produced by the late Bertram Brown, this 12" also features a previously unreleased solo Prince Alla vocal and Soul Syndicate's take on the original rhythm track.

Review: As well as navigating the realms of dub and reggae, infusing each track with his signature vintage sound and infectious grooves, Prince Fatty is well known for taking famous songs and flipping them into reggae territory, a wonderful mix of the familiar and the unepxected that usually works wonders on the dancefloor. With the fantastic 'Black Rabbit,' dub don Prince Fatty masterfully tackles Jefferson Airplane's 60s anthem 'White Rabbit', which took its inspiration from Lewis Carroll's surreal story Alice In Wonderland but hooked those references up to the drug experiences of those countercultural rtimes. The A-side is graced by with the vocals of regular Fatty collaborator Shniece, whose performance does more than simply ape Grace Slick's, adding lines and heaps of her own personality, while rich basslines, swirling echoes and soulful melodies all showcase some exceptional production skills. Naturally, there's a dub version on the B-side, and all in all this a testament to Prince Fatty's enduring influence in the contemporary reggae scene.

Review: UK reggae talent Prince Jamo, real name Ian Campbell, produced, wrote and performed this superb wedge of 70s revival roots in a shaka style. It's as deep and authentic as they come. The A-side original, 'The Badlands', has lazy horns drifting up top like a lone cloud on a red hot day. The percussion is gently sprinkled over the neat guitar riffs and rolling drums while the vocals unfold with real soul. Flip it over and you will get a dub version that is more cavernous, fleshy and deep. A lovely slice of roots that is primed and ready for any decent sound system.

Review: Prince Jamo is a top reggae talent from the UK who has a couple of hot steppers dropping early in 2024. his real name is Ian Campbell and he often does everything himself from the writing to the production to the perforce and after some fine 70s revival roots with 'The Badlands' he is now back on Black Rose with 'Back Off.' It's another sweet and juicy riddim with big horns and swaggering bass topped off by Jamo's buttery smooth vocals. Flip it over for a fine dub-wise version.

Review: VP have got some special and long-lost roots reggae classics here on 45rpm for the first timer in forever. The A-side here first dropped in 1979 and was recorded at Channel One, mixed at King Tubby's and produced by Prince Jammy not one before he went digital - something of a holy trinity of top-class reggae quality. The original is full of proper good and authentic dub flavour with fat bass and smoky atmospheres. Prince Jammy's own superb dub cut features on the flipside which is full of his usual mixing desk magic.

Review: Michael 'Palmer Dog' Palmer was one of the most notable dancehall vocalist of his era. He became quickly popular after appearing with plenty of sound systems and perfecting his unique improvisational techniques on the mic. That helped him standout in an overcrowded market and kept him popular with DJs who were turning reggae away from what it was becoming and turning it back to what it once was. This album first came in 1984 and showcased Palmer's singing style well with The Roots Radics serving as his backing band. A mini classic for sure.

Review: Meets Kelly Ranks At Channel One is one of those classic dub albums that is very much deserving of this reissue on nice heavyweight wax. Michael Palmer is the man who did the meeting per the title and he is a leading Jamaican reggae and dancehall artist who has helped shaped the culture no end. This record fuses togther elements of both of those foundations sounds with nice lead horns and swaggering rhythms topped with carefree vocals full of soul but also carrying great messages.

Review: Two and a half years on from his death, Lee 'Scratch' Perry's "final album" - for the avoidance of doubt, it's the last one he recorded - arrives. Given his history of sonic innovation, it's striking that King Perry sees he late dub titan applying his dub aesthetic (with a little help from producer Daniel Boyle and a string of guest vocalists) to a wide variety of contemporary styles. Elements of synthwave, drum & bass, big beat and electronica are thrown into the mix, with his ten-ton basslines, dub effects, reggae riffs and freewheeling vocals rooting it in his extensive musical history. Highlights include breakbeat-driven Greentea Peng collaboration '100 Llbs of Summer', the Meat Beat Manifesto-ish 'Green Banana' (where Shaun Ryder does a typically distinctive turn on lead vocals) and closer 'Goodbye', which features Perry's last recorded vocal performance.

Review: The "Disco Devil" series is a carefully curated selection of disco mixes that were laid down in the famous Black Ark Studio run by Lee "Scratch" Perry. It was a place of legendary magic, as this series shows on its fourth instalment. All the big dogs like The Upsetters, Augustus Pablo and Junior Murvin are present with their own distinctive takes on dub. Carlton Jackson also comes correct with his soul soothing "History" while a special 7" edit of Truth Fact & Correct's "Babylon Deh Pon Fire" is a rousing anthem for serious smoking sessions.

Review: Following on from the CD version of this reissue, 17 North Prada now follow it up with a welcome vinyl edition. Prince Far I worked with Joe Gibbs's house band The Professionals on Under Heavy Manners, his 1976 full-length recorded at Gibbs's studio in Kingston, Jamaica. His messages throughout his career were always focussed on social and political issues and lend this album its extra lyrical edge on top of the killer rhythms. Gibbs composed all of the tracks bar one from Errol Thompson and it is generally considered one of his finer works. Snap this one up now because it will soon disappear again.